Poco X3 Pro Review: Budgeting Like a Pro
Retail Price: $270.00
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DISCLAIMER: POCO SENT US A REVIEW UNIT OF THE X3 PRO BUT ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE OUR OWN
Product Specs +
- 6.67 inch 1080x2400p
- 395ppi
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 860
- 6GB of RAM
- 128 GB of storage
- 5,160 mAH battery
- Android 11, running on MIUI 12 for POCO
Camera Specs +
Rear Cameras
- 48 MP F/1.8 wide
- 8 MP F/2.2 ultrawide
- 2 MP F/2.4 macro
- 2 MP F/2.4 depth
Selfie Cameras
- 20 MP F/2.2 Wide
Video
- Rear camera shoots 4K at up to 30fps
- Selfie camera shoots 1080p at up to 30fps
A few months ago I was blown away by the features on POCO’s entry level budget phone, the M3. Flash forward to now and I’ve been using the slightly more expensive X3 Pro for quite a few weeks and with a few exceptions that I’ll share in a bit, this may very well be my top budget smartphone of the year. Let’s take a closer look.
An Eye-Catching Device
I’m not usually a fan of big brand logos stamped across my items, but in POCO’s case, I’ve been quite impressed so far with the added touches they included with their branding. The X3 Pro is made out of plastic that splits the back with a colored matte touch material and a glossy strip right in the center utilizing POCO’s logo in a colored gradient. The design features on the strip include subtle diagonal lines leading up to the quad camera setup. Despite the approximate $300 price tag on this phone, it looks and feels premium enough in the hand to make me feel fancy holding it. I’m reviewing the Phantom Black color, but the X3 Pro comes in a Metal Bronze and Frost Blue colorway as well. There’s a dual sim tray located on the left hand side of the device, dual speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack, and subtle power button and volume rockers on the right side.
The Display
The front of the X3 Pro features a very large 6.67” FHD+ display with Corning Gorilla Glass 6. At a 20:9 aspect ratio with 395 ppi and 120Hz refresh rate, I absolutely love watching videos and doing anything entertainment related here. The colors are vibrant but not too oversaturated and the display is the perfect size for consuming media on. As an avid reader, the X3 Pro was convenient for me to read one-handed and it even has a reading mode where the display will mimic the color of paper thus producing less strain on your eyes.
It Has the Power
At its core, the X3 Pro was created as an upgraded and more powerful version of its predecessor, the X3. This is such an impressive package because you get almost flagship specs for just $300! The X3 Pro comes in two storage options: the version I have has 6 GB of ram and 128 GB of storage but there is another version with 8 GB of ram and 256 gb of storage sold as well. On the inside is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 860 and the phone runs on MIUI 12. As a whole package, I was really impressed with the specs on this device. It shows on the phone too! I usually have multiple apps open at once, and 99% of the time, this phone can handle everything I throw at it. The only time I had an issue with this phone during my review period was when it randomly rebooted itself. It happened just once, but stayed frozen on the MIUI screen for about 30 minutes. I tried everything from plugging it in to triggering reboots in multiple ways to no avail. Luckily, half an hour later, it just kind of figured itself out. Other than that, this phone has shown that it’s pretty capable and worth good value.
A Very Big Battery
There are many phones that fall short for me when it comes to battery. I don’t play too many games on my phone, but I am on my device a lot throughout the day and I usually always have to plug in my devices before bedtime. The Poco X3 Pro features a whopping 5,160 mAh battery. I’ve estimated on normal use, that comes out to about seven hours of screen on time for me. I can watch videos for hours while doing everything else I usually use my phone for and still have ample battery to get me through the day. When it comes time to charge, the X3 Pro does support 33W fast charging using the included USB-C charger. Unfortunately, there is no wireless charging capability, but for $300, I’m okay with this.
How’s the Camera?
In my review of the POCO M3, I shared that I thought the camera was probably the most disappointing feature of the phone. And while the X3 Pro’s camera did seem like a step up, I still think there’s room for improvement. The quad camera setup on the back of the device includes a 48 MP main camera, an 8 MP ultra-wide, a 2 MP macro, and a 2 MP depth sensor. You can record 4K at up to 30 fps. The front features a 20 MP selfie camera. Lately, most of my photos have been pictures of my dogs and if we’re outside in a lot of sunlight, photos turn out pretty good for the most part. However, indoors or in lowlight, images come out blurrier and with more shadows than I’d like. The most unique feature of the cameras though is this dual video mode that lets you record using both the front and rear cameras simultaneously. I can see this being used for vlogs or reaction videos and it’s a unique detail that adds a nice touch to the phone’s extra features.
Other Factors
What impressed me about the X3 Pro wasn’t just the specs it had, but really just how good the overall package is for the dollar amount. For example, not only is there a side mounted fingerprint sensor on the power button, the X3 Pro also has Face Unlock capabilities as well. It also supports NFC and has dual speakers, making it well rounded and versatile. Due to a combination of an enjoyable display, strong processor performance, long battery life, and the improved structure of MIUI, this phone outperforms what the price tag would suggest it should. There are still pre-installed apps that come with the X3 Pro including Facebook, LinkedIn, and PUBG (you can uninstall them by the way) and it still doesn’t completely feel as clean as a phone with stock Android, but nevertheless, it works really well.
High Value, Low Price Point
If you’re looking for high value at a low price point, this is absolutely a phone I would recommend to people. It’s really hard to ignore the holistic package that POCO offers in this device and with the exception of some minor software hiccups, there’s a lot you can get out of the X3 Pro.
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Lida
Always the number cruncher, the former narrative journalist turned data scientist, can’t help but find herself bursting with excitement with each new generation of tech gadgets. After all, predicting future trends is Lida’s forte. Any gadget that survives Lida’s torturous, adult working woman itinerary of over 700 notifications a day deserves praise!